Newspapers / The Echo (Pisgah Forest, … / March 1, 1952, edition 1 / Page 4
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ALWAYS BE CAREFUL WITH FIRE IN THE WOODS I' f ^ ' s jdik a feeling of ill-will toward the Government and Set fires on National Forest lands as a means of revenge; or, sometimes a man who is jobless might set a fire so he might obtain work fighting the fire at Government pay of eighty cents an hour. Brush Fires: Careless handling of brush fires, started by persons clearing off their property v/hich adjoins National Forest Areas, often leads to fire spreading onto the Area. Careless Sportsmen and Picnickers: Careless handling of matches, cigarettes, pipe heels and campfires often lead to destructive woods fires. Pyromania: Persons are occasionally afflicted with a mental condition which drives them to set fires just to see the "pretty flames.” Lightning: On rare occasions lightning will strike a dead tree, setting it afire. According to Forest Service records, only one fire in the Pisgah Area has been traceable to lightning. FIRE PREVENTION EQUIPMENT Four lookout towers were erected in strategic areas. These towers, manned 24 hours a day at a cost of $350 a week, are equipped with tele phones and two-way radios. A caterpillar tractor with a fire plow is kept ready for use should it be necessary to cut a "fire break” through the woods. Also on hand is a large water pump for use when a fire occurs near a water-source. Boxes of handtools (fire-rakes, axes, pumps, etc.) are kept in readiness for use by fire-fighting crews. Too, a crew of twenty men is available for immediate dispatch to a fire scene. All Forest Service trucks are outfitted with fire-fighting equipment and two-way radios, so that, should a Ranger be in an area away from a fire, he might be contacted and informed of the fire’s location. The total value of all fire-fighting equipment (handtools, radios, towers, phone lines, tractor, ctc.) is approximately $150,000. REVENUE FROM THE FORESTS Logging operations are carried on in the forest areas by private lumber companies who pay premium prices for every tree cut. All the timber IS harvested selectively under Government super vision and managed so that yield will be sustained. Cutting and logging are done with due regard to protecting slopes from quick surface run-off and erosion, and protection of scenic and recreational values. Of the money received from timber sales and other forest uses, 25 percent is returned in lieu of taxes to the counties in which the forest is located, to be used for roads and schools. An additional 10 percent is made available to the Forest Service for roads and trails within the region. The Pisgah Area paid to the state in 1951 $42,- 705.22, with Transylvania County’s portion of this amounting to $7,412.51. The remainder of the 1951 income went to the Forest Service’s treasury. The money is returned to the area in al lotment form to cover operating expenses. Thus far, with receipts exceeding expenditures, Pisgah National Forest has more than paid its way. • Break matches before throwing them away. • Always use the ash tray in your car. • Bury cigarette butts ancf pipe heels, • Be extra careful with trash lires. • Douse campfires with water. * Know and obey the local fire laws.
The Echo (Pisgah Forest, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
March 1, 1952, edition 1
4
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